Perseus, Demigod of Olympus

It's only dark until your eyes adjust.

"Go to sleep , darlings, till the summer comes again."

ANNABETH had just come down from her room and was still in a sort of dazed state due to her grandfather's overwhelming , all-encompassing presence. The sacrifices hurt , but she never regretted them. The monsters no longer attacked her ,at least. Looking around she saw she was in a huge palatial building , which looked almost like a hotel , of sorts. The uniqueness of the building was that everything was white : the walls , the decorations , the doors and windows , everything. Though the windows were closed , she could feel a cold wind gust throughout the hall , almost like it was somehow disapproving of her. She began to feel distinctly uncomfortable, and looked around for Khione , the woman she had met the previous night. As she walked towards the far end of the hall , the wind suddenly picked up it's pace and for a second all she could feel was cold . She screamed out, but before a sound escaped her throat , she felt Kronos' presence flicker and suddenly she was fine, and the chill in the air gone. "Paltry tricks by the North Wind , my child ", her grandfather spoke in her mind "as if something that weak could ever harm my champion and descendant!" Her heart warmed to hear that Kronos had protected her , and as the Titan's echoing laugh faded into the corners of her mind , she smiled again , happy to have met her caring grandfather.
A door opened to her left and Khione walled out , dressed in a pale blue gown and two empty white plates hovering in the air beside her.
"Girl, welcome to Le palais de glace , my humble home, " Khione said walking towards another door , which opened automatically and inside Annabeth saw another huge impeccably white room." I sense you already know my name , but in any case , I am Khione, daughter of Boreas and the goddess of snow."
At the centre of the room , Khione flicked her hand and a round table materialised out of thin air , with two chairs beside it. She wondered if she should introduce herself or bow before the goddess first. " No!" Kronos said in her mind , with a forcefulness that surprised her. "You are my champion, my dear , you should not have to bow before such inconsequential beings . Introduce yourself, that is better." Taking her grandfather's advice, she spoke up "I am Annabeth Chase. A demigod , chosen by the Lord of Time to bring back the golden age." The entire palace seemed to flicker and that cold feeling came back for a second as Khione looked at her , shocked. "What?! I thought you were some half blood child of one of the free Titans , when Father said I was to help you ! You presume much , Annabeth. I may not like the Olympians , but I am not stupid enough to commit treason against the Sky God. " Annabeth felt the air temperature slowly drop around her and fought to not let fear show on her face as she said " Lord Kronos is King. The gods , their palaces , and the lies they've told , must be broken. If you trust the Sky God , you are a fool yourself." She remembered her mother abandoning her at her father's doorstep. This goddess in front of her could do magical feats so effortlessly. Her mother hadn't cared. None of the gods cared. Her mother didn't save her from the spiders. Kronos did. Kronos helped her. Kronos was her family. Lost in thoughts , she almost didn't see the look of rage that flitted accross Khione's face. "You dare take that accursed name in my halls ? You dare to insult me in my halls ?" This time , Annabeth couldn't respond. The temperature has dropped below freezing, and she fought to stay conscious. Khione's eyes glowed and the air carved itself into thin spears made of ice which glided towards her. As soon as they touched her , Annabeth wanted to scream. They were so cold , it felt like her skin was burning. She could feel herself floating.. would she die now ? Suddenly the ice spears disappeared . Annabeth's mind was tethered on the edge of mortality, as her mouth opened of her own accord.

~~~~~~~~~~~
Khione knew she should have been more careful. Giving solace to an unknown half-blood based on a demande from her father was not a good idea. She had underestimated this girl , she knew , as soon as she saw her icy needles melt and the girl's eyes started to glow with a golden hue. How could she have been so stupid ? She asked herself. Someone so ridiculously intent on bringing back the Titans would obviously have some communication with the Crooked One. Feigning ignorance she threw five more spears at the demigod, and watched in dismay as Time slowed and the spears stopped moving. "Yes." Said an ancient , gravelly voice that did not emanate from the unconscious girl's lips , she knew. "I Dare. "

"Lord Kronos ," she bowed . " I did not know it was you , forgive me. " She hoped he bought the lie. " Girl" , the Titan said in a mocking tone. " I hope we have your support for our cause ? " She didn't have a choice.
" Of course , my lord. It would be my honour." The Titan frowned, seeming to sense the insincerity in her tone. She trembled as the Titan's presence fell on her , and the sleeping girl dropped to the floor. "Greece did not have much in the way of winter. They did not fear you. But we are in another world , now. Here , you could be great. A force to be reckoned with. Instead , you bow to my children and play errand-girl for your father." She felt images thrust into her mind.. Olympus frozen , the mortals dropping to their feet before her. "I will give you a choice still , girl. The girl is my champion, but she is young. I need an enforcer. If you need the respect that is due to you , join us. Otherwise we shall leave immediately. " She gave up her resistance. It wasn't like the Olympians considered her a threat. This time , she let her thoughts wander of her own accord to Poseidon leaving her with a newborn son , and her despair as she had to leave the boy to die. Apollo and Hermes doing nothing as Artemis attacked her in fury. She made up her mind. "I pledge myself to your cause , Κύριος Κρόνος. Let the River Στυξ hear my vow to never waver in my loyalty for you. " Thunder crashed through her palace as her promise was solemnized by the infernal river. " Welcome to my ranks , Khione. You may rise now." He said. "Take care of Annabeth. She is very important to me. One might even say she was dear to me."
Kronos' laughter echoed around her from the depths of Tartarus. Nodding , she got to her feet and sighed in relief as the Titan removed his presence from her. She made sure the little half-blood was comfortable before leaving. She had a lot to think about. Did her father support the Titans , she wondered.. Why else would he lead the child to her ?

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Annabeth dreamt peacefully, Kronos' presence masking her from other dream spirits. "It worked perfectly, my lord. She truly believes it was her father who led the girl to her." A snarky voice spoke to her left. "You have done well , Dolos." She barely recognised the second voice as her great-grandfather's and knew she was safe. "Lord Kronos , I support you unconditionally, of course. Yet I cannot help but yearn to see my master again. You did promise he would be free."

"He will be , Dolos. Very soon , actually. I have sent the General to deal with the matter personally. "

" Thank you , my lord. " She heard the unknown voice say and didn't remember anything after that.

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(AND.. THAT'S IT. In case any of you thought I'd died , sorry to disappoint. I hate exams , but they're a necessary evil. This chapter is a bit different from the others but it's a very important one , as I think you'll understand. Unlike canon , I want to show stuff from the antagonist's perspective as well.

Le palais de glace is French , it means the ice palace.
demande is not a typo , it's french too , meaning request.
In case some of you didn't read Heroes of Olympus, Khione and her father live in Quebec and they both speak French.

Κύριος Κρόνος means Lord Kronos, it's Greek.

Additionally, I've drawn from a few myths for this chapter.. Feel free to read the links below for more insight..

https://greekmythology.fandom.com/wiki/Khione_(Snow_Nymph)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolos_%28mythology%29

The chapter title is from the song "I hope you change your mind" by the Chainsmokers.
I hope I'll be able to update soon , and thank you so much for the 13k reads !